Cherry Hill enters 21st Century, sort of

The Cherry Hill City Council has passed an ordinance that lifts a requirement that liquor sales must be from a standalone store. But supermarkets must first obtain a liquor license and be at least 15,000 square feet and provide a dedicated space and cash register for liquor sales. Not everybody was happy. Vishnu Reddy spoke on behalf of family members who own Wine Legend on Route 70 to the Courier-Post. “This is going to take away from our customer base,” said Reddy. “You may drive by next year and see another empty building.” That doesn’t show a lot of confidence in customer service or customer loyalty. Liquor store owner Mike Marrow of Moorestown took the tried and true path — saying he feared access to alcohol in supermarkets could result in underage drinking. “A majority of people who work at supermarket are under 21,” he said. “So what do you think is going to happen at 3 a.m. when no one is watching?” If you judge by other states where you can buy alcohol in groceries, not much. New Jersey likes to think of itself as progressive and and a leader but even in the Bible Belt of South or North Carolina buying alcohol in groceries is no big deal. You can even buy wine and beer in those convenience store/gas stations, some of which have a nice selection. Everybody is all in favor of the free enterprise system until it comes to them and then they want competition restricted.